Truth (85 page)

Chapter
57

Moments before Tony’s plane touched down in
Iowa:

At a roadside motel, somewhere in Illinois,
Claire dried her newly temporarily-died red hair while Phillip
explained the first part of her escape. “You’ll stay in Florence
for a few days before you make your way across Italy toward
Switzerland.” His voice came through the thin bathroom door as she
changed into the clothes he’d brought. “The secret of staying
hidden is moving, but not too erratically.”

She slid the squeaky pocket door, creating
an opening large enough for her to exit the ugly pink and black
tiled bathroom. The smell of stale smoke overtook her senses as her
eyes scanned the shabby motel room. Thread bare carpet highlighted
the traffic areas. Despite the surroundings, Claire’s voice sounded
stronger than before, “Eventually I want to settle. I have a child
to raise.”

From the corner of her eye, in the cloudy
mirror above the low dresser, she saw her unfamiliar reflection.
She noticed the looseness of the new clothes. They hid her
pregnancy much better than her previous outfit.

“
You will, after you
acquire the money from the account in Geneva.”

Claire nodded. Catherine’s
documents had specific instructions for accessing Nathaniel Rawls’
hidden fortune. It seemed appropriate. If
his
decree could send her into
hiding --
his
money could finance her future. Claire even justified it as
her baby’s grandfather’s support. It was amazing how the mind can
twist things, making them legitimate, especially under
duress.

Phil went on, “You’ll have
a week to travel from Florence to Geneva. I’ll meet you there next
Thursday. Your hotel reservation is set in Geneva. I need to know
where to meet you. It’s too dangerous for you to have contact with
anyone in the United States, even me. While leaving the U.S.
you’re
Lauren Michaels
. In Geneva, minus the time you’re in the bank, you’re
Isabelle Alexander
.
Hopefully, once I’m there, we’ll discuss your eventual
destination.”

“
Hopefully?” Claire
asked.

“
Your transaction must be
complete. Temporary identities are one thing; securing a permanent
identity with a new residence is expensive.”

Claire nodded. She wondered how much money
the Switzerland account held.

Phil left Claire at a cafe in Burlington, a
suburb of Cincinnati. From there she called a taxi which took her
to the Cincinnati International Airport. She had to admit, he was
smart. The curbs at the airport had video surveillance. With this
plan, if she were to be identified, he wasn’t connected.

Claire realized she was flying international
with nothing more than a carry-on; Phil supplied her with the
basics. She would need to purchase everything else new in Italy.
His plan provided her with enough starter cash to sustain her until
she completed her financial transaction in Geneva.

The first security check
was unnerving. Claire summoned every mask she’d ever worn. Once she
passed to the other side of the check point and nodded to the last
TSA agent, she sighed with relief. From that point on,
Ms. Lauren Michaels
confidently met each agent and scan head-on.

Lauren
was thirty thousand feet in the air, crossing the Atlantic
Ocean, by the time the police finished searching Anthony Rawlings’
estate. The striking green-eyed woman with deep amber hair rode
economy-class, wedged between a mother with a sleeping child and a
man in a cheap suit. The man to her left was not only a barrier to
the aisle, but after he consumed too many seven dollar beers, his
attempts at flirting made her debate the pros and cons of
committing assault and battery.

It took all her self-restraint to not pull
the large diamond from her purse and wiggle it under his nose. In
her daydream she curtly said, “Leave me alone, jerk; I’m engaged.”
But sadly she realized that was no longer true.

The diamond was the only instruction from
Phil, Claire didn’t follow. She could leave her Prada purse, her
overpriced clothes, and her Cartier sunglasses... just not the
ring. Claire closed her eyes and remembered the afternoon she’d
finally accepted it...

It was a Saturday; Tony was working from
home. She’d spent most of the morning out in the gardens. Before,
when they were married, Claire longed to work in the gardens,
planting and tending his beautiful plants. Back then she worried it
wasn’t appropriate. Now she didn’t care and didn’t ask. One day she
started talking with James, the gardener. He helped her find the
tools. Tony never complained. On the contrary, he delighted in her
hobbies, often asking questions about her plants and supporting her
desire to get her hands dirty and tend the small living things.

On that particular Saturday, after digging,
dividing, replanting, and weeding, Claire decided to cool off in
the pool. Tony must have seen her swimming. She’d only been in the
cool water for a few minutes when he joined her. While they talked
and swam in liquid bliss, he reached for her hand. Seeing the dirt
still under her nails he mentioned, “I think you need a manicure
after all this manual labor.”

Claire giggled and pulled her hand away. “I
wasn’t planning on having anyone look that closely. Besides, I
haven’t had a chance to shower yet.”

“
Now that sounds
intriguing!” His eyes twinkled as his lips formed a mischievous
grin. “In the meantime, I know a way to deflect people’s attention
from your nails.”

She was holding his shoulders and the moment
for no particular reason felt right. Later, Claire decided it was
the ordinary calmness she liked; nothing special, just realness
that comes with every day. Her answer surprised him, “Well, that
shower I’m about to take...” Her emerald eyes returned his sparkle.
“Perhaps if you can figure a way to bring the ring in there, I’d
slip it on. I mean...” She cooed into his ear, “I wouldn’t want it
to go down the drain.”

Grasping her growing waist, he gently pushed
her away and stared deeply into her eyes. Claire remembered feeling
the familiar tug as his gaze lingered. “Are you finally saying yes,
you will be Mrs. Rawlings again?”

She nodded and kissed his
neck. Her insides tightened at the sound of his responding growl.
When her lips finally released his neck, she replied, “I’m willing
to go from
dating
to
engaged
– can we not rush the married part?”

His dazzling smile melted her completely.
Claire wanted the shower, the ring, and whatever would come next.
However, his gaze turned serious as did his tone, “There is one
condition.”

After trying so long for her to accept his
proposal, the addition of a stipulation surprised Claire. “Yes?”
she asked tentatively.

“
I don’t want to have to
track it down again. Do not sell it, give it away, or leave it any
place but on your beautiful finger.” It was one of those
non-debatable statements.

Nodding with a seductive smile, Claire
whispered, “I promise.” She sealed the deal with a lingering
kiss.

She couldn’t leave the ring behind.

Three days later...

Tony stared at the monitors in his office.
The large screen was sub-divided into many smaller screens. At the
top was a live feed from outside his office door. He didn’t want
intruders. Below were multiple smaller screens changing constantly
with various locations on the estate. The bulk of the screen held
two videos. He controlled the speed and sound of each one. On the
left he saw Claire in his garages, rushing to the key cabinet and
removing the key to a Mercedes Benz. In the lower right corner the
date read: 01/17/12. On the right was the video of Claire walking
casually to the key cabinet which no longer held a lock. He watched
as she removed the keys to a BMW and calmly walked toward the car.
The date in the lower right corner read: 09/04/13. Repeatedly, he
paused the action and scrutinized the scenes. With all his might he
tried to read Claire’s facial expressions.

In twenty twelve, he saw fear as Claire
looked nervously all about her. On the video recorded only days
earlier, Tony wondered what he saw. No, he knew her look; it was a
mask of steely determination. What he didn’t know was the emotion
hidden underneath.

The police also saw the twenty thirteen
video. They believed it proved she left of her own free will. But
if that were true, wouldn’t she have taken more belongings?
Wouldn’t she have taken more money? She had access. She had credit
cards and an ATM card... yet they were all found in an Illinois
hotel.

At nearly two in the morning, Tony was all
alone. The various screens displaying the estate were devoid of
people. Everyone was fast asleep. Even the crickets outside his
open windows knew to leave him in silence. Yet, with no one to
hear, he spoke the question he’d been wrestling with for days,
“Why, Claire? Why?” In one gulp he downed the amber liquid from the
crystal tumbler. Though the rich Glen Garioch Whiskey went down
smoothly, it didn’t ease the ache in his head or the pain in his
chest.

His facade of the last few
days successfully drained his strength. Tony knew he needed sleep,
but how could he sleep in
their
bed? He couldn’t even stand to enter their room
or see the unfinished nursery. It was the
not knowing
that hurt the most. If
he knew she was safe. If he knew she did this of her own free
will... but he didn’t know. Last time -- in 2012 -- he knew. And
the pain he’d put her through back then added to his current
torment.

In the past few days he’d spent untold
amounts of money, had private and public agencies search every inch
of Iowa, the surrounding states, country – damn -- the world. There
were plenty of tips... a large reward will bring those. Yet, none
paid off. How could Claire evaporate into thin air?

The BMW was thoroughly searched by Iowa’s
top CSI. Only her finger prints, Clay’s, Eric’s, and his were
discovered... but no unknown clues.

During the last three days
he’d hardly left the confines of his home office. Entering the
attached bath, he saw his almost unrecognizable reflection in the
mirror. His facial hair had never been so long. Rubbing his hands
through the now soft stubble, he stared into his own eyes. For the
first time in his life he’d dared to believe in happily-ever-after.
He learned at a young age it was unattainable. Therefore, he’d
never even tried... until Claire. And somehow, for a few short
months, it was at his fingertips. The wealth, homes, and appearance
of stability and sanity... all meant nothing when he saw the
pictures of Claire with Harry. Tony couldn’t be at that damn gala
and know she was there with
him
. Hell, Tony didn’t even know
about their baby. He just knew, for the first time in his life,
Anthony Rawlings would risk public scrutiny to have what he wanted
most. What mattered to him above anything else... the problem was
making
her
realize it.

Tony turned off the screens of his computer
and lay on the soft leather sofa. His mind went back to two
thousand ten and eleven. On this very couch... on this luxurious
carpet... he smiled... on his desk... there was hardly a place they
hadn’t been together. Damn, they’d been great. Despite the happy
memories, the twisting in his heart tightened. The things he’d done
to her -- the regret was almost paralyzing.

Then somehow in this totally screwed up
world -- when all was said and done -- she’d taken him back.

The pounding in his head
brought moisture to his eyes. His words were barely audible. That
was all right; they weren’t intended for anyone except the woman
who wasn’t there. “I’m so sorry... for everything... why? ... why
did you leave me?” As the tears coated his cheeks he told
himself,
Anthony Rawlings doesn’t cry. He
doesn’t apologize, and he doesn’t cry...

*****

Once settled in
Florence,
Isabelle
utilized an Internet Cafe to surf the web and learn the
latest news happening back in Iowa. The face of Claire Nichols
appeared in multiple thumbnails. She scrolled over the pictures
which looked nothing like the blue-eyed woman with short dark hair
staring at the monitor.

Different titles
appeared:
Missing - Day Three, Reward
Offered, Ex-Husband “Person of Interest”, and Vanished – Memoirs
left behind.

Claire read each article scrutinizing every
detail. The first article spoke analytically about Claire’s
disappearance. It described the incident where her car was attacked
by another car, how that evening she went for a drive and never
returned. The article highlighted photos of her and Tony at recent
events. It even showed a recent photo of them out to eat. Claire
tried to see the restaurant. She was pretty sure it was in Chicago
and on her left hand she could see her engagement ring.

The next article said: Anthony Rawlings
believes his ex-wife was coerced off his estate and kidnapped. He
states the incident in California as evidence of a probable attack.
To this end he is currently offering a reward of $100,000 for
information leading to the safe return of his ex-wife. The Iowa
City Police Department hired additional personnel to help with the
onslaught of calls and emails. Mr. Rawlings offered to reimburse
ICPD for the extra expense.